Methods for installing an anchor bolt

ABSTRACT

A tool assembly for a rotary hammer is provided. The tool assembly includes an adapter and a drive socket removably mounted on the adapter. The adapter has a first end portion configured to be held by a chuck of the rotary hammer and a second end portion that includes a socket square drive fitting on which the drive socket is removably mounted. The socket drive fitting can have any suitable size. For example, the socket drive fitting can be a 1/4 inch, a 3/8 inch, a 1/2 inch, or a 3/4 inch square drive fitting.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/894,005, entitled “TOOL ASSEMBLY AND RELATED METHODS,” filed Sep. 29,2010 (Attorney Docket No. 028436-000100US), the entire disclosure ofwhich is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure provides a tool assembly for use with a rotaryhammer and related methods, and methods for removing frozen bolts and/ornuts. The disclosed tool assembly and related methods may beparticularly useful for installing an anchor bolt into a hole in aconcrete member (e.g., a wall, a floor, a ceiling). And methodsdisclosed herein may be particularly useful in removing a bolt and/ornut that is frozen in place due to, for example, corrosion.

Internally-threaded anchor bolts are often used to mount a structure toa concrete member. To install an anchor bolt, a holed is drilled intothe concrete member to a sufficient depth to accommodate the anchorbolt. Often, the hole diameter is selected to provide a desiredinterference fit between the hole and the anchor bolt. Such aninterference is selected such that the anchor bolt grips the interior ofthe hole sufficiently to securely support the mounted structure.

As such, it is often necessary to force the anchor bolt into the holeby, for example, a series of impacts. This can be a tedious process dueto the hardness of concrete, especially where the process must berepeated to install large numbers of anchor bolts. The use of a hammerto manually insert the anchor bolt can take a large amount of workertime. And when the temperature of the concrete drops between when thehole is drilled and when the anchor bolt is inserted, the resultingcontraction of the concrete results in increased interference, which mayresult in the expenditure of even more worker time to insert the anchorbolt.

Once the anchor bolt is inserted into the hole, the anchor bolt issecured to the hole by expanding the anchor bolt. The expansion of theanchor bolt is accomplished by tensioning an internal member via therotation of an exterior nut. The tensioning of the internal memberresults in a radial expansion of a portion of the anchor bolt disposedwithin the hole, thereby generating increased compression between theanchor bolt and the interior of the hole. Rotating the exterior nut,however, like the insertion of the anchor bolt in the hole, can be atedious process.

Accordingly, there is a need for improved tool assemblies and relatedmethods for the installation of anchor bolts. Preferably, such toolassemblies should allow for the use of a rotary hammer that is employedto drill the hole into the wall, to insert the anchor bolt into thehole, and to rotate the exterior nut to expand the anchor bolt. And sucha tool assembly should be easily engaged with a conventional rotaryhammer and provide for the insertion and expansion of the anchor bolt soas to not require removal of the tool assembly from engagement with therotary hammer between the insertion and the expansion of the anchorbolt.

Additionally, the removal of a bolt and/or nut that is frozen in placeby, for example, corrosion, can be difficult. To facilitate the removalof such a frozen bolt and/or nut, an impact wrench is often used. Theimpact wrench applies repeated torque impulses to the bolt and/or nut.While the application of the repeated torque impulses may be sufficientto remove the bolt and/or nut in many instances, it may be insufficientin other more severe cases, or may result in the threads or externalfeatures of the bolt and/or nut being stripped.

Accordingly, there is also a need for an improved apparatus and relatedmethods for removing a frozen bolt and/or nut. Such an improvedapparatus and related methods should provide increased functionality andeffectiveness relative to the use of an impact wrench to remove a frozenbolt and/or nut.

BRIEF SUMMARY

The following presents a simplified summary of some embodiments of theinvention in order to provide a basic understanding of the invention.This summary is not an extensive overview of the invention. It is notintended to identify key/critical elements of the invention or todelineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to presentsome embodiments of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude tothe more detailed description that is presented later.

The present disclosure provides a tool assembly for use with a rotaryhammer and related methods, and methods for removing frozen bolts and/ornuts. The disclosed tool assembly and related methods may beparticularly useful for installing an anchor bolt into a hole in aconcrete member (e.g., a wall, a floor, a ceiling). And methodsdisclosed herein may be particularly useful in removing a bolt and/ornut that is frozen in place due to, for example, corrosion.

Thus, in a first aspect, a tool assembly for a rotary hammer isprovided. The tool assembly includes an adapter and a drive socketremovably mounted on the adapter. The adapter has a first end portionconfigured to be held by a chuck of the rotary hammer and a second endportion that includes a socket square drive fitting on which the drivesocket is removably mounted.

The adapter can be configured to transfer an axial compression forcefrom the rotary hammer to the socket. The axial compression force isoriented along a direction from the first end portion to the second endportion. The second end portion can include external surfaces shaped tosubstantially prevent relative axial movement between the adapter andthe socket along the direction from the first end portion to the secondend portion so as to transfer the axial compression force from theadapter to the socket.

The adapter can have an elongated body between the first and second endportions. The elongated body can be oriented along an elongate axis ofthe adapter and include an external surface disposed between the firstand second end portions that is configured to be held by an operator ofthe rotary hammer during use. The external surface can include anaxial-symmetric surface with a maximum diameter of between 1.0 and 2.5inches. For example, the external surface can include a cylindricalsurface.

The first end portion can include an elongated cylindrical body. Theelongated cylindrical body can have one or more elongated recessesconfigured to be held by the chuck so as to substantially preventrelative rotational movement between the adapter and the chuck. The oneor more elongated recesses can include a recess that extends to the endof the first portion. The one or more elongated recesses can include arecess that does not extend to the end of the first portion.

The socket drive fitting can have any suitable size. For example, thesocket drive fitting can be a ¼ inch, a ⅜ inch, a ½ inch, or a ¾ inchsquare drive fitting.

In another aspect, a method for installing an anchor bolt is provided.The method includes mounting an adapter fitting having a socket squaredrive fitting to a chuck of a rotary hammer, mounting a drive socket tothe socket square drive fitting, engaging the anchor bolt with the drivesocket, driving the anchor bolt into a mounting hole by driving theadapter fitting and the drive socket with the rotary hammer operating inan axial hammering mode, and rotating the adapter fitting and the drivesocket with the rotary hammer operating in a rotation mode so as tosecure the anchor bolt within the mounting hole.

The method for installing an anchor bolt can include additional steps.For example, the method can further include constraining the adapterduring the driving of the anchor bolt into the mounting hole by a personholding the adapter.

In another aspect, a method for removing a fastening component isprovided. The method includes engaging a drive socket with a nut or afastener head, and, simultaneously, imparting a sequence of axialimpacts onto the nut or the fastener head from the drive socket along anaxis of rotation of the nut or the fastener head, and imparting asequence of torque impulses onto the nut or the fastener head from thedrive socket about an axis of rotation of the nut or the fastener head.

The method for removing a fastening component can include additionalsteps. For example, the method can further include coupling the drivesocket with a rotary power tool operable to simultaneously impart thesequence of axial impacts and the sequence of torque impulses to thedrive socket. The method can include mounting an adapter fitting havinga socket square drive fitting to a chuck of a rotary power tool operableto simultaneously impart the sequence of axial impacts and the sequenceof torque impulses to the adapter fitting, and mounting the drive socketto the adapter fitting via the socket square drive fitting.

The sequence of axial impacts and the sequence of torque impulses can becoordinated in various ways. For example, the sequence of axial impactsand the sequence of torque impulses can be in phase. The sequence ofaxial impacts and the sequence of torque impulses can be out of phase.The sequence of axial impacts and the sequence of torque impulses havedifferent frequencies.

For a fuller understanding of the nature and advantages of the presentinvention, reference should be made to the ensuing detailed descriptionand accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a tool assembly for use with arotary power tool, such as a rotary hammer, in accordance with anembodiment.

FIG. 2 is an end cross-sectional view of the tool assembly of FIG. 1 forsection 2-2.

FIG. 3 illustrates the tool assembly of FIG. 1 mounted to a rotaryhammer, in accordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an exploded side view illustrating a concrete member having ahole for an anchor bolt, an anchor bolt to be inserted into the hole,and a partial view of the tool assembly of FIG. 1 used to insert andexpand the anchor bolt in the hole.

FIGS. 5 and 6 illustrates the anchor bolt of FIG. 4 being inserted intothe hole via the use of the tool assembly and rotary hammer of FIG. 3 toapply repeated impacts to the anchor bolt to drive the anchor bolt intothe hole.

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate the use of the tool assembly and rotary hammerof FIG. 3 to rotate the external nut of the anchor bolt of FIG. 4 totension the internal member, thereby expanding the anchor bolt.

FIG. 9 illustrates the installed and expanded anchor bolt of FIG. 4.

FIG. 10 is a simplified block diagram illustrating steps of a method forinstalling an anchor bolt, in accordance with an embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a simplified block diagram illustrating steps of a method forremoving a frozen fastening element, in accordance with an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In the following description, various embodiments of the presentinvention will be described. For purposes of explanation, specificconfigurations and details are set forth in order to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the embodiments. However, it will also be apparent toone skilled in the art that the present invention may be practicedwithout the specific details.

Furthermore, well-known features may be omitted or simplified in ordernot to obscure the embodiment being described.

Referring now to the drawings, in which like reference numeralsrepresent like parts throughout the several views, FIG. 1 shows anexploded perspective view of a tool assembly 10, in accordance with anembodiment, for use is a rotary power tool, such as a rotary hammer. Thetool assembly 10 includes an adapter 12 and a socket 14. The adapter 12has a first end portion 16 that is configured to be held by a chuck(e.g., a chuck of a rotary hammer), a second end portion 18 that isconfigured with a socket square drive fitting 20, and an elongate body22 between the first and second end portions.

As further illustrated in FIG. 2, the first end portion 16 has acylindrical body with first recesses 24 and second recesses 26 that areshaped to interface with a chuck so as to substantially prevent relativerotational movement between the adapter and the chuck. The firstrecesses 24 extend to the end 17 of the first end portion 16, while thesecond recesses 26 do not. While the first end portion 16 of the presentembodiment includes the first and second recesses 24, 26, the recessesare optional. Additionally, the first end portion 16 does not have to beconfigured as shown, but can be configured in any suitable way tointerface with the chuck of a rotary power tool. For example, the firstend portion 16 can be configured with an elongated polygonal shapeselected to provide a suitable interface with the chuck of a rotarypower tool.

In addition to the socket square drive fitting 20, the second endportion 18 includes external surfaces 28 shaped to substantially preventrelative axial movement between the adapter 12 and the socket 14 so asto transfer axial compression force from the adapter to the socket whenthe tool assembly 10 is used in conjunction with a rotary hammer todrive an anchor bolt into its mounting hole. While the external surfaces28 illustrated are outwardly flaring curved surfaces, other suitableexternal surface shapes can be used. For example, a circular flangeconcentric to the elongate axis of the adapter 12 can be used tointerface with the end face of the socket 14 to transfer the axialcompression force.

The elongate body 22 connects the first and second end portions 16, 18and can be hand held during the insertion of an anchor bolt into itsmounting hole so as to suitably position the protruding portion of theanchor bolt during the application of the axial impacts used to drivethe anchor bolt into its mounting hole. For example, the elongate body22 includes an external surface 30 configured to be held by an operatorof a rotary hammer during use. The external surface 30 has asubstantially cylindrical shape and a diameter that is sized to becomfortably hand held. While the external surface can have othersuitable shapes and sizes, an axially-symmetric surface may beadvantageous if and when the external surface is held during rotation ofthe tool assembly 10. The maximum diameter of the external surface 30can be selected within a suitable range to be held. For example, themaximum diameter can range from 1.0 to 2.5 inches. As illustrated, theelongate body 22 can be suitably configured to transition from the firstend portion 16 to the external surface 30, and from the external surface30 to the second end portion 18. Preferably, the elongated body is sizedto have sufficient strength and stiffness to prevent breakage of thetool assembly 10 during use.

FIG. 3 illustrates the tool assembly 10 mounted in chuck of a rotaryhammer 32. The rotary hammer 32 includes a main handle 34 and anauxiliary handle 36. During use in a hammering mode, the rotary hammer32 can be used to apply a series of axial impacts to insert an anchorbolt into its mounting hole. When used to insert the anchor bolt, thecombination of the rotary hammer 32 and the tool assembly 10 can be heldby the main handle 34 in one hand and by the elongate body 22 in theother hand, such as by the external surface 30. Holding the combinationrotary hammer and tool assembly in this way may serve to stabilize theposition of the anchor bolt during its insertion better than if the userholds onto the combination using the main handle 34 and the auxiliaryhandle 36. After the insertion of the anchor bolt is complete, the needto stabilize the position of the anchor bolt is eliminated. As such, itmay be preferable to hold the combination rotary hammer and toolassembly by the main and auxiliary handles during the expansion of theanchor bolt.

FIGS. 4 through 9 illustrate the installation of an anchor bolt 38 withthe use of the combination of a rotary hammer (not shown) and the toolassembly 10 (partially shown). FIG. 4 is an exploded side viewillustrating a concrete member 40 having a hole 42 for the anchor bolt38, the anchor bolt 38 shown prior to insertion into the hole 42, and apartial view of the tool assembly 10. The anchor bolt 38 is insertedinto the hole 42 and the combination of the rotary hammer and the toolassembly 10 is used to drive the anchor bolt 38 into the hole 42 via aseries of impact forces (rotary hammer in hammer mode) as illustrated inFIGS. 5 and 6. Once the anchor bolt 38 is fully inserted into the hole42, the combination of the rotary hammer and the tool assembly is usedin rotational mode to rotate the nut of the anchor bolt 38, therebytensioning the internal member and expanding the anchor bolt 38, therebygenerating increased compression between the anchor bolt 38 and theinterior of the hole 42 as illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8. The resultinginstalled anchor bolt 38 is illustrated in FIG. 9.

The tool assembly 10 provides a number of advantages. The tool assembly10 has a simple configuration that provides an inexpensive and efficientway to use a rotary power tool to install and/or remove fasteningelements (e.g., anchor bolts, bolts, nuts). The socket square drivefitting 20 allows the adapter to be coupled with different socket typesand/or sizes (e.g., conventional sockets, custom sockets), therebyproviding increased flexibility to use the tool assembly 10 toinstall/remove different fastening elements. The external surface 30 ofthe adapter 12 provides a convenient location to hold close to thesocket 14, which may thereby help to better stabilize an anchor boltwhile using a rotary hammer and the tool assembly 10 to insert theanchor bolt into its mounting hole.

Anchor Bolt Installation Methods

FIG. 10 is a simplified block diagram illustrating steps of a method 50for installing an anchor bolt, in accordance with an embodiment. Thetool assembly 10 can be used in practicing the method 50. In step 52, anadapter fitting having a socket square drive fitting is mounted to achuck of a rotary hammer. In step 54, a drive socket is mounted to thesocket square drive fitting. In step 56, the drive socket is engagedwith an anchor bolt. In step 58, the anchor bolt is driven into amounting hole by driving the adapter fitting and the drive socket withthe rotary hammer operating in an axial hammering mode. During step 58,the adapter can be constrained by a person holding the adapter so as tostabilize the position of the anchor bolt as it is driven into itsmounting hole. In step 60, the adapter fitting and the drive socket arerotated with the rotary hammer operating in a rotation mode so as tosecure the anchor bolt within the mounting hole.

Tools and Methods For Removing a Frozen Fastening Component

One known approach for loosening a frozen in place fastening component(e.g., bolt, nut, jar lid) is to subject the fastening component to oneor more impacts from one or more directions. Existing rotary hammers areoperable to separately and simultaneously apply repeated axial impactforces and a torque. Existing impact wrenches are operable to applyrepeated torque impulses. By combining the functionality of a rotaryhammer with an impact wrench, a rotary power tool operable tosimultaneously apply a sequence of repeated axial impact forces and asequence of repeated torque impulses can be obtained. The sequences canbe staged in any desired fashion. For example, the repeated axial impactforces and the repeated torque impulses can be out of phase (peak valuesnot occurring at the same time) or can be in phase (peak valuesoccurring at the same time). The sequences can also employ the samefrequency (resulting in a fixed phase between the sequences) and canemploy different frequencies (resulting in a varying phase between thesequences). When such a rotary power tool is equipped with a chuck, thetool assembly 10 can be mounted in the chuck and used to transmit thesequences of axial impacts and torque impulses to the frozen fasteningcomponent.

FIG. 11 is a simplified block diagram illustrating steps of a method 70for removing a fastening element, in accordance with an embodiment. Thetool assembly 10 can be used in practicing the method 70. In step 72, adrive socket is engaged with a nut or a fastener head. In step 74, asequence of axial impacts and a sequence of torque impulses aresimultaneously imparted onto the nut or the fastener head. The sequenceof axial impacts is imparted onto the nut or the fastener head from thedrive socket along an axis of rotation of the nut or the fastener head.And the sequence of torque impulses is imparted onto the nut or thefastener head from the drive socket about an axis of rotation of the nutor the fastener. The method can include coupling the drive socket with arotary power tool operable to simultaneously impart the sequence ofaxial impacts and the sequence of torque impulses to the drive socket.The method can include mounting an adapter fitting having a socketsquare drive fitting to a chuck of a rotary power tool operable tosimultaneously impart the sequence of axial impacts and the sequence oftorque impulses to the adapter fitting and mounting the drive socket tothe adapter fitting via the socket square drive fitting. The sequence ofaxial impacts and the sequence of torque impulses can be in phase or outof phase. The sequence of axial impacts can have the same or differentfrequencies.

By combining the functionality of a rotary hammer and a torque wrench,more effective removal of frozen fastening components may result. Forexample, the resulting simultaneous application of a sequence of axialimpacts and a sequence of torque impulses may serve to more effectivelybreak up corrosion holding the fastening element, thereby helping tofree up the frozen fastening element so that it can be removed withoutstripping the threads or external wrenching features of the fasteningelement.

Other variations are within the spirit of the present invention. Thus,while the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative constructions, certain illustrated embodiments thereof areshown in the drawings and have been described above in detail. It shouldbe understood, however, that there is no intention to limit theinvention to the specific form or forms disclosed, but on the contrary,the intention is to cover all modifications, alternative constructions,and equivalents falling within the spirit and scope of the invention, asdefined in the appended claims.

The use of the terms “a” and “an” and “the” and similar referents in thecontext of describing the invention (especially in the context of thefollowing claims) are to be construed to cover both the singular and theplural, unless otherwise indicated herein or clearly contradicted bycontext. The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing”are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including, butnot limited to,”) unless otherwise noted. The term “connected” is to beconstrued as partly or wholly contained within, attached to, or joinedtogether, even if there is something intervening. Recitation of rangesof values herein are merely intended to serve as a shorthand method ofreferring individually to each separate value falling within the range,unless otherwise indicated herein, and each separate value isincorporated into the specification as if it were individually recitedherein. All methods described herein can be performed in any suitableorder unless otherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearlycontradicted by context. The use of any and all examples, or exemplarylanguage (e.g., “such as”) provided herein, is intended merely to betterilluminate embodiments of the invention and does not pose a limitationon the scope of the invention unless otherwise claimed. No language inthe specification should be construed as indicating any non-claimedelement as essential to the practice of the invention.

Preferred embodiments of this invention are described herein, includingthe best mode known to the inventors for carrying out the invention.Variations of those preferred embodiments may become apparent to thoseof ordinary skill in the art upon reading the foregoing description. Theinventors expect skilled artisans to employ such variations asappropriate, and the inventors intend for the invention to be practicedotherwise than as specifically described herein. Accordingly, thisinvention includes all modifications and equivalents of the subjectmatter recited in the claims appended hereto as permitted by applicablelaw. Moreover, any combination of the above-described elements in allpossible variations thereof is encompassed by the invention unlessotherwise indicated herein or otherwise clearly contradicted by context.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for installing an anchor bolt, themethod comprising: mounting an adapter fitting having a socket squaredrive fitting to a chuck of a rotary hammer; mounting a drive socket tothe socket square drive fitting; engaging the anchor bolt with the drivesocket; driving the anchor bolt into a mounting hole by driving theadapter fitting and the drive socket with the rotary hammer operating inan axial hammering mode; and rotating the adapter fitting and the drivesocket with the rotary hammer operating in a rotation mode so as tosecure the anchor bolt within the mounting hole.
 2. The method of claim1, further comprising constraining the adapter during the driving of theanchor bolt into the mounting hole by a person holding the adapter.